Thousands search for new doctors

When Dr. Alfredo Gonzalez of Falmouth gave up his license to practice medicine after being arrested on marijuana charges earlier this month, he wasn't alone.

CYNTHIA McCORMICK

When Dr. Alfredo Gonzalez of Falmouth gave up his license to practice medicine after being arrested on marijuana charges earlier this month, he wasn't alone.

Within the past year, the state Board of Registration in Medicine has ruled that two other Cape primary care physicians had to give up the privilege of practicing medicine because of criminal charges or professional missteps, and a Sandwich internist was convicted of drug and Medicaid fraud.

These turns of events have left thousands of patients searching for a new doctor at a time when there is a nationwide shortage of primary care physicians.

"I wouldn't say it's unusual," said Russell Aims, spokesman for the Board of Registration in Medicine. "In a given year, we discipline between 70 to 80 doctors out of the 30,000 that are out there."

But on the Cape, with its large population of senior citizens and traditional shortage of primary care physicians, each discipline affects hundreds of patients.

In July, Dr. Michael Brown, 53, was jailed after a jury found him guilty of prescribing narcotics for no medical purpose. His license had been suspended by the state Board of Registration in Medicine in 2005.

This spring, Dr. Ann Gryboski voluntarily suspended her license to practice after shooting her abusive husband to death. Last month, a grand jury declined to prosecute her and Gryboski said in an interview she planned to practice again.

In late September of last year, Dr. Neena Chaturvedi voluntarily gave up her license after patients complained to the state about lost medical records and other issues.

In another case, the board put Dr. Richard Smayda, formerly of Brewster Medical Associates, on probation late last year after he was accused of inappropriate conduct toward several female patients.

Both Gonzalez and Gryboski are employees of Cape Cod Healthcare Inc. and had a panel of about 2,000 patients each, said David Reilly, spokesman for Cape Cod Healthcare.

Dr. Neena Chaturvedi, and her husband, Dr. Rahul Chaturvedi, had a bustling practice at Physician Medical Centers in Hyannis, reporting up to 49,000 patient visits a year.

Although Rahul Chaturvedi has an active medical license, financial and legal problems are taking a toll on the practice, which declared bankruptcy last month. A PMC office worker said Rahul Chaturvedi would be working a reduced schedule.

Cape Cod Healthcare is scrambling to fill in the gap in patient services caused by Gryboski's and Gonzalez's arrests months apart, Reilly said.

"Our doctors and other providers have done a good job of pitching in and helping out with the patients," Reilly said. He said some of Gonzalez' patients will be able to see the other two doctors at Bourne Internal Medicine, while others will be matched up with other practices on the Upper Cape.

It has helped that Cape Cod Healthcare has been able to recruit eight new primary care physicians this year, with another two being expected to start work this fall, Reilly said.

But finding a new doctor is only part of the problem when one's medical provider is accused of criminal or non-professional conduct, some say.

One former heroin addict who did not want to be named said he can't find a physician to fill his prescription for the withdrawal medication suboxone now that Gonzalez has been arrested.

Gonzalez was one of a handful of doctors on Cape Cod who prescribe suboxone. He also was director of inpatient treatment services at High Point, a treatment center in Plymouth for people with substance abuse problems, from February until his arrest, said Julie Lizotte, director of marketing and development at High Point.

Dr. Maryanne Bombaugh, president of the Barnstable Medical Society, said people should remember these cases involved a small percentage of the 449 physicians practicing on Cape Cod.

The state Board of Registration in Medicine's role is to make sure that physicians are able to fulfill their great responsibilities to patients, said Dr. Dale Magee, president of the Massachusetts Medical Society.

"It's a role in society as well as a job," Magee said.

June Allen Silvia of Wareham said she and her husband, Charles Silvia, plan to remain with Dr. Gonzalez if his license is re-instituted.

"He saved my husband's life" by diagnosing a "silent heart attack," she said. "I have nothing but good to say about Dr. Gonzalez. I feel if he didn't have 'doctor' in front of his name, it wouldn't be such a big deal."

Cynthia McCormick can be reached at cmmcormick@capecodonline.com.

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